


A Night Out

by miss_aligned



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Mass Effect 3, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-22
Updated: 2016-05-22
Packaged: 2018-06-10 00:36:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6930823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miss_aligned/pseuds/miss_aligned
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shepard intends to avoid work for just a few hours and finds herself a comfortable little seat at the bar. She, unfortunately, does not go unnoticed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Night Out

It was probably a silly idea from the beginning. There were always documents that needed reading, weapons that needed cleaning, and people that needed berating. Still, Shepard couldn’t help but feel like she just wanted to get out for the night. The dangerous missions, difficult decisions, and endless struggles in everything from politics to Reapers were all taking a serious toll on her psyche. She just wanted to go and get a drink.

She should have known that it wouldn’t be an entirely quiet night. Once she’d gotten to the med bay and noticed that Dr. Chakwas, one of her favorite drinking partners, was out for the evening, she realized that she was going to have to vacate the premises as well. There was no reason to stay cooped up on the Normandy when they’d docked on the Citadel, after all.

It would have been a challenge to recognize her once she changed into perfectly normal civilian clothing, let her hair down, and essentially covered up any indication that she was Alliance, a Spectre, or the infamous Commander Shepard. When she settled into a booth at Purgatory, she was fairly sure that she’d managed the impossible and gone unnoticed.

Shepard was well into her second drink before anyone dared to interrupt her silent reverie and people-watching.

“What’s a cute little thing like you doing off in a corner all by yourself?” A tall, muscular man approached. He looked confident and young, wearing typical Alliance gear and a big, unapologetic smile. He was the type of guy that might have caught her eye once upon a time. Tonight, not so much.

“Hydrating,” came Shepard’s short response, as she held up her glass and took a drink. Her gaze shifted to various other patrons scattered around the club as a subtle hint for him to get away while he still could.

“Would you like a little company?” He asked, though he was already scooting into the booth beside her. He was assertive, that much was obvious. Shepard guessed that he wasn’t used to encountering much resistance from women.

“Oh. I suppose that wasn’t an actual question, then.” She tipped her glass up again, working to drain its contents before having to make small talk with a young Alliance showboat.

“I’m just trying to make some friends before I ship out again.” His smile was rather endearing, but Shepard had heard that line more times than she could count. Hell, she’d probably used it before when she was young and stupid.

“Hmm.” She smirked, but didn’t say anything further. She hoped that a little awkward silence would do the trick. The commander had no intention of actually being mean to him, but she wasn’t going to humor him, either.

“I’ve got a big assignment coming up for the Alliance. Rumor has it that I’m going to be transferred to the Normandy. Don’t know when I’ll be back.” The barely perceptible slur in his words hinted at the fact that he was fairly inebriated, though he had been covering it fairly well up until now.

Her eyebrow lifted questioningly. Now she had to hear more. “That so?”

“You don’t believe me? It’s docked right out there,” the young, oblivious man added with a jerk of his head in the wrong direction. The docks where she’d left her ship were on the opposite side of the Citadel.

In truth, Shepard almost felt pity for him. He’d become a victim of his own stupidity or drunkenness, making claims to the absolute wrong person. She wanted to laugh and yell all at the same time. It was vaguely offensive that he intended to use her ship as an method to impress women. What was worse, it had probably worked somewhere along the way.

In an inexplicable turn of events, he leaned in close as though he was going to whisper in her ear or kiss her or some other unfathomable act. Shepard, in turn, leaned far and away, denying him the opportunity. He smelled strongly of stale beer and some other particularly strong spirits, unknowingly verifying his state of drunkenness. Her fingers twitched around her glass, ready to shove the heel of her hand straight into his nose.

“Miss me, Lola?”

As the large, powerful frame of one Lieutenant Vega came into view, the poor, confused young soldier’s eyes widened. James never bothered to hide his Alliance affiliation. You could see him coming a mile away, and it seemed that this soldier knew exactly who he was. His gaze flicked quickly between Shepard and James, obviously uncertain of the affiliation between the two. Whether by overpowering testosterone or some unspoken man rules, he took the hint and moved to stand, nodding his head respectfully to the lieutenant in the process.

“Sir.” He turned, nodding his head, too, at Shepard, then quickly moved off in the direction of a large group of young soldiers on the other side of the bar.

“Having fun?” James asked, smirking at her over his beer.

“Boatloads,” she responded with a chuckle. “I suppose you noticed what was going to happen there?”

“I’m an observant kind of guy, Lola. Figured I’d help you out. I hope he appreciates the fact that I just saved his life,” he answered with a rumbling laugh. “Not to mention, if he recognized me, it’s only a matter of time before he realizes who you are.”

“Great,” Shepard said dryly. “Don’t you worry, Lieutenant. I can handle myself.”

“Oh, I have no doubt. I’ll be honest with you, though. I didn’t do that for you. I didn’t even do it for that pendejo over there. I thought I’d help a certain Major who isn’t around right now to take care of things like this himself.”

The commander nearly dropped her drink to the tabletop as she stared at him. His smirk broadened into a pleased smile. He turned his head away from her for a moment as he glanced back at the group of Alliance kids. She simply stared, trying to figure out what he knew about the relationship between her and Kaidan, because it certainly seemed like he knew more than she herself did.

“I don’t know–” she began.

“Like I said, I’m an observant kind of guy.” The grin he was sporting didn’t waver, even as he took a long swig of his beer. He swallowed with satisfaction and remained silent for a few seconds, clearly savoring everything about the moment. “Well, I think they’re on to us now.”

Shepard’s gaze drifted past James to land on the group, and sure enough, they were laughing and playfully shoving the misled soldier. He had his hands covering his face, but all of his exposed skin was flushed red with embarrassment. Oddly enough, she could sympathize at the moment.

“See ya around, Lola,” James quietly offered with a stifled chuckle. Just as quickly as he’d appeared, he vanished around the corner of the booth, leaving her with nothing but questions and a pulsing electronic beat to keep her company.


End file.
